


Cool Your Head

by DktrAgonizer



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, taking creative liberties with the way magic works
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-09
Updated: 2017-01-09
Packaged: 2018-09-15 20:12:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,467
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9254621
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DktrAgonizer/pseuds/DktrAgonizer
Summary: The night before the trip to the Disc of Cauthess, Noctis's headaches keep him up. Ignis attempts to help ease the pain. (Takes place during Chapter 4).





	

He isn't sure if it's the persistent headache or the cramped space in the RV that drives him outside. Sleep would have been hard enough to come by with the throbbing in his skull and the accompanying flashes of the Meteor and the Archaean, and but it's infinitely harder with the mysterious Ardyn spending the night with them. He must have spent an hour curled up in himself, waiting in vain for his body to fall asleep, head in his hands, before giving up.

Noctis draws in a deep breath when he steps outside, and instantly feels just a little bit better. He thinks he'll just spend a while in the open space, letting the cool air ease the pain. He takes a seat on the ground, legs stretched before him, leaning back against the RV with his head tilted to the breeze.

For about ten minutes, it feels like it's working. Then, there's a tremor in the earth and he braces himself as a fresh stab of pain hits him. Noctis drops his head in his hands with a grimace, eyes screwed shut as another vision of the Archaean appears in his mind.  _ What do you  _ want? he thinks fiercely.

He hears the RV door open and close, but he doesn't look up. Somebody walks around to where he's sitting, then there's a hand on his shoulder. Noctis raises his head to see Ignis bent over him, a look of concern on his face. “Are you alright?” he asks, voice soft.

“More headaches,” Noctis mumbles. “Couldn't sleep.”

“Hm.” A small frown crosses Ignis’s face. His hand stays where it is, and Noctis doesn't move it. He keeps his own hands on his head, loose, fingers working fruitlessly in an attempt to massage away the worst of the ache. “You're going to have to try. We will be arriving at the Disc of Cauthess tomorrow, and you'll need your strength just in case there are any… surprises.”

Noctis lets out a small laugh. “What, you don't trust our new friend?” It's a facetious question; none of them trust Ardyn, but they'd had no choice but to accept his offer. They had little other option to take.

Ignis crouches down in front of him, free hand raising to brush Noctis’s bangs out of his eyes. “Where is your headache located?” he asks, fingers lingering on his forehead. “Closer to the front or to the back?”

“Front, I guess.” Noctis drops his hands and closes his eyes, focusing - for just a moment - on the ache. “And behind my eyes.”

The hand on his shoulder leaves, and then there are fingers lightly pressed against his temple. “I'm going to try something, Noct,” Ignis says. “Tell me if it's too much.”

There's a soft crackling sound, the sharp smell of winter, and the gloved fingers against his skin are  _ cold.  _ Noctis blinks his eyes open to see a blue glow on Ignis’s gloves. He's got both his hands on either side of Noctis’s head now, fingers spreading cold at his temples. Ignis kneads the skin gently, working from his temples, across his eyebrows, and over his forehead. The cold spreading through the front of his skull feels weird, but not it’s not cold enough to be unpleasant - and it's quickly taking away the ache.

“That feels nice,” Noctis sighs as Ignis’s fingers massage his temples again. He closes his eyes and leans into the touch. He can feel his worries ebbing away, too; there's only Ignis’s hands on him, and the comforting coolness spreading through his head.

Time, too, slips away. Noctis can't say how long it takes for the warm fingers on his forehead to leave; and yet, the warmth lingers behind. “Better?” Ignis asks. Noctis opens his eyes to see Ignis resting with his arms lying across his knees, watching him expressionlessly. “I'm afraid the magic ran out. I hope it was long enough.”

Noctis takes a deep breath, giving it a moment to see if the pain will come back now that Ignis has finished. Satisfied when there's no pain after a moment, he nods. “Much better. Thanks, Specs. Maybe I'll have you do it again next time.”

It's enough to draw a small smile of amusement. “With luck, it won't be needed after our venture tomorrow. But I'm glad to help.” He stands up and dusts himself off before offering a hand to Noctis. “Come on, then. Kings still need their beauty rest.”

“Give me a moment, will ya?” Noctis takes the proffered hand and lets Ignis pull him to his feet. He continues to pull until he has Noctis in an embrace, one hand coming to rest on his back and the other moving to the back of his head. Noctis laughs into Ignis’s neck. “That worried about me? Don't worry, you know I like to sleep in. I'll get plenty of rest.”

Ignis presses his nose into Noctis’s hair. “We don't know what we'll encounter at the Meteor. Promise me you'll be careful?”

The plea sends a surge of warmth through him, entirely devoid of a magical origin. His arms circle loosely around Ignis’s waist. “I'll be as careful as ever, Iggy. You know me.” Noctis turns his head to meet Ignis’s mouth with his own. “Now, come on,” he mumbles against Ignis’s lips. “Weren't you just saying how we should go inside and get some sleep?”

Ignis laughs and pulls away. Noctis lets him with just a touch of reluctance. “I suppose you're right. Shall we?”

\---

The next day at breakfast, Ignis is watching Prompto cycle through the photos he'd taken over the past few days. Noctis is giving his plate of fries his full attention until he hears Ignis say, “Wait - go back.” His tone is full of suspicion and Noctis looks up to share a raised eyebrow with Gladio before looking over.

Prompto looks nervous even as he pretends not to hear Ignis. He's putting the camera away when Ignis snatches it from his hands. “Hey!” Prompto exclaims, trying unsuccessfully to snatch it back.

“What's going on?” Gladio asks. Ardyn glances over, momentarily curious, but goes back to his food. 

Ignis taps at the camera until he finds what he's looking for. His face reddens as he finds it, and Noctis gets up to see what exactly has got him so embarrassed. “I-I just came out to see if you guys were okay,” Prompto says in a rush as Ignis tilts the camera for Noctis to see. “But it looked you were having a moment, so - I mean, I think you were both too focused to notice me, so uh…”

On the screen is a picture of Ignis crouched in front of Noctis, hands on his face. It's dark, but the red firelight from his gloves are enough to light up both of their faces. It's beautiful lighting, really; Ignis looks concerned but determined, and the dramatic lighting makes his expression that much more intense. As for himself… There’s a smile on his face. He looks content, almost blissful.

Gladio lets out a low whistle. “That's a nice shot.”

“He was spying,” Ignis gets out. He doesn't sound angry, just flustered. Even if his help with Noctis’s headache last night didn't strictly fit, he's always been embarrassed by PDA. 

“I left  _ right _ after I took it, promise.” Prompto grabs the camera back and holds it protectively to his chest. “I'm sorry, I couldn't resist! It just screamed, ‘hey, I'm a perfect shot, take me,’ and - what _was_ that, anyway?”

Noctis returns to his seat and his plate of fries, but he keeps his eyes on Prompto. “I had a headache. He used his magic to help.”

“Huh.” Prompto gazes at the picture for a moment before giving Ignis a hopeful look. “Hey, next time my head starts killing me, could you try it on me?”

Ignis clears his throat and opts to look down at his drink. The red hasn't quite faded yet. “Certainly, provided we have the time.”

Gladio pipes in: “Hey, don't leave me out of this.”

As Ignis assures him he won't, Noctis leans over to get another look at the picture. “Save that one,” he says. 

Prompto raises his eyebrows. “You sure?”

Noctis nods. “It's a good shot.” He glances over to Ignis, who meets his gaze and then gives a small nod. Prompto lets out a sigh of relief; clearly he'd been hoping they wouldn't make him delete this one.

“I trust we're ready to set out?” Ardyn asks, getting up from his seat at the counter. “There's no going back from this until the deed is done. Make sure you're prepared.”

Noctis pops his last fry into his mouth and gets up. The others follow suit and nod to Noctis in turn. “We're ready,” he says.

**Author's Note:**

> Sometimes you just get hit with inspiration while partway through a lengthy LP of a lengthy game. Thanks for reading! Consider leaving a comment letting me know your thoughts; I'd love to read them!


End file.
